Fremantle WA, April 1928


The echoes of the children’s cheers rippled across Fremantle Harbour.

“We’re almost there, Peggy,” whispered Irene, holding tight to the ship’s rail. Peggy’s face was lit by the sunset glow as she turned and smiled at her friend.

Peggy would be glad to get off the Ballarat after six long weeks at sea. She smoothed the skirt of her brown woollen Girl Guides uniform. Miss Wedlock said they all had to look their best as a photographer from the newspaper would be taking a photo of the Dr Barnardo’s party on the dock. Peggy’s smile faded as she remembered that most of the smaller children would be leaving the group here to go to a farm school. Miss Amos and Lieutenant Fitchett were handing out white floppy hats to the farm school children. She and Irene and the other teenage girls would go on to Sydney.

Peggy had helped look after some of the younger ones. She’d mothered those little children like she wished she had been mothered. She read to them. She helped them. She was there for them. Fancy her mother holding off until the last possible moment to give permission for her to come to Australia! She almost missed out on this adventure, and just because her mother wanted her back now she’d had domestic training. Selfish woman! Mother could look after herself and her new husband.

But Peggy worried about who would look after the little children in this wide brown land.

________________ 
This piece of flash fiction or palm-sized fiction was written for week 1 of the Writing Family History unit at University of Tasmania. BM

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